The Coaches Are the Brand: How Chloe Williams Built Little Wickets Around Experience
When people talk about building a strong brand, the conversation often starts with the visible things.
The logo. The colours. The website. The social media.
But families do not stay loyal to a children’s activity business because the font is nice.
They stay because the experience feels right.
That lesson sits at the heart of Little Wickets, the children’s cricket business founded by Chloe Williams. Over 15 years, Little Wickets has worked with more than 4,500 families, expanded across the East Midlands and into Berkshire, and begun growing through franchising.
Yet Chloe is clear about where the brand really lives.
“They are effectively living our brand. They are our brand.”
She is talking about the coaches.
A Parent-Led Idea
Little Wickets began because Chloe wanted something for her own children.
Her son was two, she was pregnant with her second child, and the family was already doing the usual mix of swimming, toddler activities, singing, dancing and crafts.
What Chloe wanted was a team sport that was not football.
Her family loved cricket, even though they did not come from a cricketing background, but there was very little available locally for children that young.
After talking about the idea for long enough, Chloe’s husband told her to stop thinking about it and start building it.
She trademarked the concept, developed the model and found the right coach.
“I wasn’t a coach, but I knew what I was looking for in a coach.”
Little Wickets launched in 2011.
Recruiting Beyond Qualifications
Qualifications matter, particularly when safeguarding and children’s wellbeing are involved, but Chloe has never treated them as the whole answer.
She wants to see how a coach communicates with children, how they speak to parents, whether they can think on their feet and whether their personality can hold the room.
For Chloe, coaching young children is not simply about knowing the rules of cricket.
It is about believing in what sport can do for them.
“If you don’t believe in the power of sport and what this can bring to really young kids, then you come across as quite drab and boring, and that’s not what we’re about.”
The structure is there, but the coach brings it to life.
That is why families return.
They may first discover Little Wickets through social media, a recommendation or a local search, but loyalty is built inside the session.
The experience promises to be:
- Fun and engaging
- Safe and welcoming
- Structured without feeling rigid
- Focused on confidence and wider life skills
- Delivered with genuine personality
Children may think they are simply playing cricket.
Parents can see everything else developing around it.
Creating a Clear Pathway
Little Wickets begins with First Innings for children from two and a half, before moving into Second Innings for those in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2.
From there, the aim is not to keep every child forever.
The goal is to help them move confidently into local cricket clubs.
“Nothing gives me more pleasure than somebody saying, ‘We’re not rebooking because I’m going to join the local cricket club.’ Great, job done.”
That pathway gives families a clear sense of progression and connects the business to the wider cricket community.
Alongside weekly classes, Little Wickets also delivers:
- Holiday clubs
- Nursery and school sessions
- After-school clubs
- Community activities
- Collaborations with local cricket clubs
Those partnerships help keep children involved throughout the year and create more opportunities for coaches and franchisees.
They also support grassroots clubs that may not have enough volunteers to deliver entry-level programmes themselves.
A Legacy Coming Full Circle
One of the clearest signs of Little Wickets’ long-term impact is beginning to appear in its coaching team.
Some of the first children to attend the sessions are now returning as coaching assistants and qualified coaches.
They already understand the Little Wickets experience because they were once part of it.
That creates a powerful cycle.
Children discover cricket. Some move into local clubs. A few return as coaches. They then help introduce the next generation.
Chloe can also see the legacy in junior league scorecards and local club communities, where former Little Wickeders continue their journey.
Many of those families had no previous connection to cricket.
Little Wickets gave them the first step.
Growing Through Franchising
Chloe always imagined Little Wickets as a franchise, but she was cautious about moving too quickly.
The business felt deeply personal, almost like a third child, and she wanted to know that the standards, ethos and experience could survive beyond the original locations.
Once her own children were older, Chloe had the time to systemise the business properly.
Little Wickets entered franchising in 2024, with the first franchisee launching in Berkshire in 2025.
The approach remains slow and deliberate.
Chloe is looking for people who believe in the model and understand that the real value is not simply in delivering a cricket session.
It is in creating the same feeling families have come to trust.
Watch the Full Interview
Chloe Williams’ story is a brilliant example of why brand excellence is built through delivery.
The logo may create recognition, but the coaches create loyalty.
Their personality, warmth and ability to connect with children and parents are what turn a programme into a trusted brand.
Chloe Williams is a finalist for Brand Excellence of the Year in The Class Business Awards 2026.
👉 Watch Chloe’s full interview here.
And this is only the beginning of the celebration.
Join us on Saturday 10 October 2026 at the National Conference Centre in Solihull for The Class Business Live, where finalists, judges and sponsors will come together for a brilliant day of learning, connection and honest conversations about growing a class-based business.
Then, from 6:00pm, it is time to get dressed up and celebrate properly at The Class Business Awards & Afterparty.
Book your tickets for the Class Business Awards here.
